DVD drive has to be pushed in HARD....

958 Views 10 Replies 2 Participants Last post by TriggerFinger, Jun 14, 2008

st9988

Discussion Starter · Jun 11, 2008 (Edited)

I have a Pavilion dv4155cl (dv4000) and it won't recognize my DVD drive. The drive has power and opens and closes, but it isn't recognized at all. The only way I can get it to work like normal is to push it in very hard before I boot the computer. The only problem with this, however, is eventually (in 1-10 minutes) I will get a blue error screen and my computer will automatically restart. Once it restarts the drive is gone again and I have to repeat the procedure. I don't think it's my drive because I put my friend's cd drive into my laptop and the same thing happened. I think my cd connector must be loose, but how can it give my drive power yet not be recognized?

Thanks, any help would be appreciated.

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TriggerFinger

· #2 · Jun 12, 2008

hi,

it looks like the some of the connectors has lifted from the motherboard. you still get power because the connectors/pins for power are still soldered good on the motherboard while the pins responsible for recognizing the drive may have lifted off (may be cold solder).

this explains why when you push it in at start up it gets recognized but becomes missing after some time. i think that when you push the drive in it also makes a good contact with the board but since the drive is mechanical (slight movement when used), the this contact does not stay for good.

have your mobo checked (CD/DVD drive connection). you can use this service guide to help you in the removal process. http://h10032.www1.hp.com/ctg/Manual/c00530488.pdf

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st9988

Discussion Starter · #3 · Jun 12, 2008

Thanks for your reply. I will try to open my laptop according to that manual and see if I can take a look at the mobo and the connection to the cd drive port. (Hopefully it won't be too difficult to gain access to the mobo.) If it is a bad solder then I guess it will have to be resoldered. I'll let you know what happens.

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st9988

Discussion Starter · #4 · Jun 13, 2008

I was looking at how to get to the mobo. The manual says one of the preliminary steps is to remove the heat sink. It also says I should clean the thermal paste after I remove the sink. Do I need to put new thermal paste back on when I reassemble the heat sink?

Thanks

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TriggerFinger

· #5 · Jun 13, 2008

yes, you need to apply thermal compound when you reassemble.

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st9988

Discussion Starter · #6 · Jun 13, 2008

Ok, I figured I would have to. If I'm just replacing the thermal paste that was there, is it ok to buy some of the cheaper ones I see on Ebay?

Thanks for your help.

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TriggerFinger

· #7 · Jun 13, 2008

well you can but i am not so sure of the quality. if price is considered, i think the price in eBay may be is around $3 with shipping but ArcticSilver5 from RadioShack is around $10 (check here).

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st9988

Discussion Starter · #8 · Jun 14, 2008

I was searching google for other people with my problem, and one person mentioned cleaning the contacts worked for him. What's the best way to do that? I figured I could try it.

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TriggerFinger

· #9 · Jun 14, 2008

st9988 said:
I was searching google for other people with my problem, and one person mentioned cleaning the contacts worked for him. What's the best way to do that? I figured I could try it.

the best way is to read the service manual (in the link i posted previously) for the locations and removal instructions. i say that because, the only way for you to have access the the contacts that you need to clean is by opening the laptop up.

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st9988

Discussion Starter · #10 · Jun 14, 2008

I opened it up, but I was wondering what materials I should use to clean the contacts with? Do you think "the contacts" are the conductors inside the cd drive port connector that's connected to the mobo?

THanks for your help

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TriggerFinger

· #11 · Jun 14, 2008 (Edited)

i use an ordinary circuit/electronic fast drying contact cleaner like ones here:

http://www.google.com/products?q=el...a=X&oi=product_result_group&resnum=1&ct=title

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